Star Trek: The Movie

[Timmoru Suzuki]

I really enjoyed it. As I said in the "What did you watch today thread" Star Trek is a sci-fi TV series and film series for sci-fi fans, while this is a young, vibrant action film for action fans and film goers in general. That just happens to be called Star Trek nad barely has any sci-fi at all. They do a good job of keeping every other bit of Trek out there cannon while creating a new universe for this new film franchise to have adventures in (essentially "Ultimate" Star Trek) and there are plenty of little things for fanboys to appreciate, particularly the last minute or so.

Since as it is an action film then it is good in this respect and it ends really well. A bit thin on character, but its blatantly the first of many so it can be forgiven.

It's not my favourite Trek film, not by a long shot, but it's nothing like any other bit of Trek. It certainly has way more mass audience appeal than any other Star Trek, so I can see how your average cinema goer/non-Trek fan will find this the most accessible and find it the best Trek movie.

Edited May 9, 2009 by T'Angelo Barksdale

[TGC]

Saw it yesterday afternoon and LOVED it. It was more than I expected by leaps and bounds. I'll give more in depth thoughts later, but for now 8.5/10

[Crybaby Bunting]

I watched it despite never having watched a single Star Trek episode, it pleasantly surprised me how good it actually was.

I watched it with someone who had seen loads of the Star Trek tv series, and he enjoyed it too.

Ultimately this film did what so many other Star Trek films have failed at, manage to appeal to the casual market whilst at the same time appeal to the older market (eg. OMFG NEMOY)

[ACCBiggz]

Saw it tonight, and was blown away. Miles beyond what I expected.

What is going to help this film stay at the top of the box office for weeks to come is it goes so much beyond just being a Star Trek film.

Wrong. It'll be #2 next weekend and then probably #2 the weekend after that.

Angels & Demons followed by Disney/Pixar's Up!

[TGC]

Saw it tonight, and was blown away. Miles beyond what I expected.

What is going to help this film stay at the top of the box office for weeks to come is it goes so much beyond just being a Star Trek film.

Wrong. It'll be #2 next weekend and then probably #2 the weekend after that.

Angels & Demons followed by Disney/Pixar's Up!

And Terminator. Terminator will clean the fuck up.

[Jimmy]

I loved this film. I've never watched Star Trek before, but this film was so damn good. I'd recomend this to anyone as it was a truly entertaining film.

[ROC]

Yup, thought it was great. Great modernization, though, let's get into spoilers:

Spoiler: Click here to view

A friend noted that Kirk being buzzed to the exact ice planet where he goes into the exact tunnel that has older Spock in it is kind of lazy. Though, that didn't really bother me.

I was bothered that Spock/Uhura didn't go anywhere. We're uncertain if she just loves him for the shit that happened in his life. Then again, that's Kurtzman and Orci screenwriting for you.

Everything else was pretty badass. I liked everyone's performance as far as giving their characters a new spin, though, Anton Yelchin as Chekov got on my nerves. Was he that annoying in the series? Still, they let Chris Pine be pretty charming, Sylar got to be badass, LOTS OF FISTFIGHTS HAPPENED, and everyone else, including Simon Pegg, felt like fine fits for their characters.

[TheRaySays]

Saw it. Loved it. I had high expectations and they were exceeded. I'm even more excited about the prospect of more.

It's not perfect by any means, but all of my quibbles are fairly minor. What it got right it got VERY right. What it got wrong is easily ignored.

And Bumblebee didn't piss on anyone. (Y)

[Maxx]

Absolutely loved it, going to see it again next weekend. Just a wonderfuly fun and entertaning film all around.

[TGC]

Seeking out new life for the series, Star Trek commanded a stellar estimated $72.5 million on approximately 7,400 screens at 3,849 sites over the weekend (plus an estimated $4 million from Thursday night previews). Paramount Pictures' Star Wars-like treatment of Gene Roddenberry's science fiction franchise resulted in the biggest Trek opening yet, soaring past the previous high of Star Trek: First Contact, which started at $30.7 million or the equivalent of over $50 million adjusted for ticket price inflation.

Star Trek steered the weekend as a whole to nearly $148 million, which was the biggest total ever for a second weekend in May and up nearly 18 percent over last year. The picture also yielded the most-attended start ever for a movie debuting in that timeframe, topping Twister. Unlike Twister, Star Trek opened in the wake of another big movie, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which wilted to an X-Men franchise low.

Included in Star Trek's total was the biggest-grossing weekend ever in IMAX history. The picture raked in an estimated $8.3 million at 138 IMAX venues, surpassing The Dark Knight's previous benchmark of $6.3 million. According to Paramount's exit polling, Star Trek's overall audience composition was 60 percent male and 65 percent over 25 years old.

It has been six and a half years since the last movie, Star Trek: Nemesis, fizzled at the box office and four years since the lowly-rated prequel series, Enterprise, ended its run. With that time to heal, the new Star Trek was positioned as a reboot a la Batman Begins and Casino Royale. The marketing slickly offered the familiarity of Star Trek's culturally iconic trappings with the promise of a grand, visceral adventure. Even if people hadn't seen previous Trek movies or shows, many elements, from the character types to the catch phrases, have saturated the culture for decades. That gave the new movie, which is a return to the original and most famous crew, a widely resonant framework to catapult it above other action pictures.

That doesn't mean there weren't miscues. The "This is not your father's Star Trek" line of the ad campaign, while accurate in its description of the movie itself for better or for worse, was not only puerile but unnecessarily insulting to the previous Star Trek incarnations and the audience base. One doesn't have to alienate the fans in order to broaden the appeal (even if most will take the abuse and still see the new movie anyway). The Batman and James Bond franchises were successfully rebooted without openly attacking what came before (and Batman had more to apologize for after Batman Forever and Batman and Robin).

Overshadowed by the flame-out of the later movies and television series, the popularity of Star Trek has been underrated, and the franchise certainly has a better batting average than J.J. Abrams, the director of the new movie who was given the keys after his first picture Mission: Impossible III disappointed and after his television series were either heavily-marketed non-starters in the ratings (Alias) or saw their audiences dwindle (Lost). While no Star Wars, Star Trek: The Motion Picture broke the opening weekend record nearly 30 years ago, amassing $11.9 million at 857 theaters or the equivalent of over $34 million adjusted for ticket price inflation, and its final tally of $82.3 million would equal nearly $240 million today. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn also set a new weekend benchmark in its debut, and the average total gross of the previous Star Trek movies, including both the respected entries and the clunkers, is close to $150 million adjusted.

Meanwhile, the summer's kick-off, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, eroded 68 percent to an estimated $27 million. That's a slightly steeper decline than the previous picture, X-Men: The Last Stand, and it's also the least attended second weekend of the franchise. In ten days, Wolverine has collected a muscular $129.6 million. While it trails the first X-Men adjusted for ticket price inflation as well as X2: X-Men United and The Last Stand by wide margins, it would have been unrealistic to expect Wolverine to match the heights of its predecessors, given that it's a prequel that effectively limited its audience to the fan base, unlike Star Trek.

Like Wolverine, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past had a lower second weekend gross than its predecessors: in this case, the previous Matthew McConaughey romantic comedies Fool's Gold, Failure to Launch, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and The Wedding Planner. Nonetheless, it had a good hold, down 32 percent to an estimated $10.5 million, raising its total to $30.2 million in ten days.

Fading faster than the stalker thrillers of yore that it aped, Obsessed retreated 45 percent to an estimated $6.6 million, hiking up its tally to a potent $56.2 million in ten days. 17 Again again mirrored the last major body switch comedy, 13 Going on 30, and made an estimated $4.4 million for $54.2 million in 24 days. The weekend's other new nationwide release, crime comedy Next Day Air, packed a modest estimated $4 million at 1,138 locations.

[stokeriño]

There are almost no movies which I even bother to consider getting on Blu-Ray (as opposed to DVD).

This one, however, will without a doubt be receiving such an honour.

[TGC]

So you liked it?

[stokeriño]

I did. (Though I said so in the Like thread last week, rather than in here)

[TGC]

Oh. OKay.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

There are almost no movies which I even bother to consider getting on Blu-Ray (as opposed to DVD).

This one, however, will without a doubt be receiving such an honour.

I feel EXACTLY the same way, mainly because it looked THAT damn good.

Sadly, I forsee a few problems, not least of which include not actually owning a HDTV or a Blu-Ray player.

Edited May 11, 2009 by T'Angelo Barksdale

[stokeriño]

I do not have those problems.

The only other Blu-Ray movie I have so far is Iron Man...but Star Trek will be snazzier.

[TGC]

You don't have Voyager on Blu-Ray?

[stokeriño]

I don't even own all of Voyager. (Only seasons 3 - 7, I think)

[TGC]

Oh. Well then I can't really use my "even shitty shows get put on Blu-Ray" line then, huh? Oh well.

[Ananas]

3 1/2 day estimates for Star Trek now up 3 million to 79 million. That's a very good sign, as a smaller than expected drop off indicates turnout well beyond the franchise's base. It's a $150 million film, so it needs to hold reasonably well and at least do that much domestically. Nonetheless, this is some really good news for people hoping that the financials take care of themselves and make a sequel happen.